Meme Wars
The Untold Story of the Online Battles Upending Democracy in America
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Narrated by:
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Rick Adamson
About this listen
Bloomsbury presents Meme Wars by Joan Donovan, Emily Dreyfuss, and Brian Friedberg, read by Rick Adamson.
A groundbreaking investigation into the digital underworld, where far-right operatives wage wars against mainstream America, from a masterful trio of experts in media and tech.
Memes have long been dismissed as inside jokes with no political importance. Nothing could be further from the truth. Memes are bedrock to the strategy of conspiracists such as Alex Jones, provocateurs like Milo Yiannopoulos, white nationalists like Nick Fuentes, and tacticians like Roger Stone. While the media and most politicians struggle to harness the organizing power of the internet, the “redpill right” weaponizes memes, pushing conspiracy theories and disinformation into the mainstream to drag people down the rabbit hole. These meme wars stir strong emotions, deepen partisanship, and get people off their keyboards and into the streets—and the steps of the US Capitol.
Meme Wars is the first major account of how “Stop the Steal” went from online to real life, from the wires to the weeds. Leading media expert Joan Donovan, PhD, veteran tech journalist Emily Dreyfuss, and cultural ethnographer Brian Friedberg pull back the curtain on the digital war rooms in which a vast collection of antiesablishmentarians bond over hatred of liberal government and media. Together as a motley reactionary army, they use memes and social media to seek out new recruits, spread ideologies, and remake America according to their desires.
A political thriller with the substance of a rigorous history, Meme Wars is the astonishing story of how extremists are yanking our culture and politics to the right. And it’s a warning that if we fail to recognize these powerful undercurrents, the great meme war for the soul of America will soon be won.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2022 Joan Donovan, Emily Dreyfuss, Brian Friedberg (P)2022 Bloomsbury Publishing PlcListeners also enjoyed...
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- How Woke Media Is Undermining Democracy
- By: Batya Ungar-Sargon
- Narrated by: Batya Ungar-Sargon
- Length: 7 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Today’s newsrooms are propagating radical ideas that were fringe as recently as a decade ago, including “antiracism,” intersectionality, open borders, and critical race theory. How did this come to be? It all has to do with who our news media is written by—and who it is written for. In Bad News: How Woke Media Is Undermining Democracy, Batya Ungar-Sargon reveals how American journalism underwent a status revolution over the twentieth century—from a blue-collar trade to an elite profession.
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Balanced, informative, and insightful
- By J. B. Eibel on 06-06-22
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Republic of Lies
- American Conspiracy Theorists and Their Surprising Rise to Power
- By: Anna Merlan
- Narrated by: Suehyla El-Attar, Anna Merlan - introduction
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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American society has always been fertile ground for conspiracy theories, but with the election of Donald Trump, previously outlandish ideas suddenly attained legitimacy. Trump himself is a conspiracy enthusiast: from his claim that global warming is a Chinese hoax to the accusations of “fake news”, he has fanned the flames of suspicion. But it was not by the power of one man alone that these ideas gained new power. Republic of Lies looks beyond the caricatures of conspiracy theorists to explain their tenacity.
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even-handed and thought-provoking
- By Lenny Pozner on 04-17-19
By: Anna Merlan
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The Making of the President 2016
- How Donald Trump Orchestrated a Revolution
- By: Roger Stone
- Narrated by: BJ Pottsworth
- Length: 14 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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In the early hours of November 9, 2016, one of the most contentious, polarizing, and vicious presidential races came to an abrupt and unexpected end when heavily favored presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton called Donald J. Trump to concede, shocking a nation that had, only hours before, given little credence to his chances. Donald Trump pulled the greatest upset in American political history despite a torrent of invective and dismissal of the mainstream media.
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behind the scenes
- By Rocker on 04-06-17
By: Roger Stone
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Insane Clown President
- By: Matt Taibbi
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Dispatches from the 2016 election that provide an eerily prescient take on our democracy's uncertain future, by the country's most perceptive and fearless political journalist.
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Slow Motion Horror
- By Rick on 01-20-17
By: Matt Taibbi
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The Death of Truth
- Notes on Falsehood in the Age of Trump
- By: Michiko Kakutani
- Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert
- Length: 3 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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We live in a time when the very idea of objective truth is mocked and discounted by the occupants of the White House. Discredited conspiracy theories and ideologies have resurfaced, proven science is once more up for debate, and Russian propaganda floods our screens. The wisdom of the crowd has usurped research and expertise, and we are each left clinging to the beliefs that best confirm our biases.
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Prescient Account of the Mechanics of Tyranny
- By Brian Price on 07-27-18
By: Michiko Kakutani
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Twitter and Tear Gas
- The Power and Fragility of Networked Protest
- By: Zeynep Tufekci
- Narrated by: Carly Robins
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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An incisive observer, writer, and participant in today's social movements, Zeynep Tufekci explains in this accessible and compelling book the nuanced trajectories of modern protests - how they form, how they operate differently from past protests, and why they have difficulty persisting in their long-term quests for change.
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Insightful but frustrating
- By James on 03-11-18
By: Zeynep Tufekci
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The Corrosion of Conservatism
- Why I Left the Right
- By: Max Boot
- Narrated by: Max Boot
- Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Warning that the Trump presidency presages America’s decline, Max Boot, the political commentator, recounts his extraordinary journey from lifelong Republican to vehement Trump opponent. As nativism, xenophobia, vile racism, and assaults on the rule of law threaten the very fabric of our nation, The Corrosion of Conservatism presents an urgent defense of American democracy.
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Not an intellectual tour de force!
- By Wayne on 07-14-19
By: Max Boot
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Under Fire
- Reporting from the Front Lines of the Trump White House
- By: April Ryan, Tamron Hall - foreword
- Narrated by: Janina Edwards
- Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Veteran White House reporter April Ryan thought she had seen everything in her two decades as a White House correspondent. And then came the Trump administration. In Under Fire, Ryan takes us inside the confusion and chaos of the Trump White House to understand how she and other reporters adjusted to the new normal. She takes us inside the policy debates, the revolving door of personnel appointments, and what it is like when she, as a reporter asking difficult questions, finds herself in the spotlight, becoming part of the story.
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- By Deborah on 09-03-18
By: April Ryan, and others
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A Slobbering Love Affair
- The Torrid Romance Between Barack Obama and the Mainstream Media
- By: Bernard Goldberg
- Narrated by: Alan Sklar
- Length: 4 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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According to Bernard Goldberg, the media crossed an important line in the 2008 presidential race, moving from their usual unthinking liberal bias to crass partisanship of the crudest kind, practically acting as spin doctors for the presidential campaign of Barack Obama. In A Slobbering Love Affair, his most provocative book yet, Goldberg demonstrates how the media launched an unparalleled effort to ensure the election of the man they regarded as the One.
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spot on!
- By Eunice on 05-28-09
By: Bernard Goldberg
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Fault Lines
- A History of the United States Since 1974
- By: Kevin M. Kruse, Julian E. Zelizer
- Narrated by: Fajer Al-Kaisi
- Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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If you were asked when America became polarized, your answer would likely depend on your age: You might say during Barack Obama’s presidency, or with the post-9/11 war on terror, or the culture wars of the 1980s and 1990s, or the “Reagan Revolution” and the the rise of the New Right. How did the US become so divided? Fault Lines offers a richly told, wide-angle history view toward an answer.
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Good overview of the past 45 years
- By Adam Shields on 02-26-19
By: Kevin M. Kruse, and others
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Republicans Buy Sneakers, Too
- How the Left Is Ruining Sports with Politics
- By: Clay Travis
- Narrated by: Clay Travis
- Length: 9 hrs
- Unabridged
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Sports media superstar Clay Travis wants to save sports from the social justice warriors seeking to turn them into another political battleground. Having ruined journalism and Hollywood, far-left-wing activists have now turned to sports. Travis argues it’s time for right-thinking fans everywhere to put down their beers and reclaim their teams and their traditions. In Republicans Buy Sneakers, Too, he replays the arguments he’s won and lays out all the battles ahead. His goal is simple: to make sports great again.
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Love or hate him you should love this book
- By Mike on 10-03-18
By: Clay Travis
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The Silencing
- How the Left Is Killing Free Speech
- By: Kirsten Powers
- Narrated by: Kristin Watson Heintz
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Life-long liberal Kirsten Powers blasts the Left's forced march towards conformity in an exposé of the illiberal war on free speech. No longer champions of tolerance and free speech, the "illiberal Left" now viciously attacks and silences anyone with alternative points of view. Powers asks, "Whatever happened to free speech in America?"
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Audible censors fantastic book on free speech
- By Steven on 06-07-15
By: Kirsten Powers
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In Trump We Trust
- E Pluribus Awesome! (That Was the Easy Part) and Is Fighting for US
- By: Ann Coulter
- Narrated by: Ann Coulter
- Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Donald Trump isn't a politician - he's a one-man wrecking ball against our dysfunctional and corrupt establishment. We're about to see the deluxe version of the left's favorite theme: Vote for us, or we'll call you stupid. It's the working class against the smirking class. Now Ann Coulter, with her unique insight, candor, and sense of humor, makes the definitive case for why we should all join his revolution.
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Doesn't deliver on it's promises.
- By Greg Hill on 08-24-16
By: Ann Coulter
What listeners say about Meme Wars
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Wilson
- 10-22-22
More of an historical document
A comprehensive retracing of the last decade of players and ideas behind political and cultural meme wars. If you’re hoping for strategies to defeat the toxic elements of the culture, this isn’t the book to diagnose and repair the culture. It serves as a timeline, covering the evolution of right and hard-right movements from early liberal “Occupy” foundations. More history than theory, it helps fill in the blanks in coverage, but offers no solutions. File between “LikeWar” and “Mindf*ck” on your political theory and disinformation shelf.
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- Sonia
- 11-17-22
10 min in and pepe the frog is pronounced wrong
I'm only on chapter 3 but the narrator grossly mispronounces Pepe the Frog... can't take him seriously. Seems like they could have caught that mistake or chosen a narrator who's vaguely aware of memes.
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- dana haggett
- 04-04-23
Academic, interesting history
Interesting research linking the Occupy movement, driven by the Left, and Unite the Right up to the US insurrection.
Written by professional academics, not writers. So not too juicy.
Narrated by my directions app. The famous meme Pepe the Frog is pronounced “Peep” rather than peh-pay. AnTEEfah, the anti-fascist movement is pronounced AN-tih-fah. The narrator consistently references “Pow” which I believe is the /pol site on 4chan. Initially confusing and then just frustrating. Good thing none of the action takes place in Gloucester.
What is the word for typos in Audible?
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